welcome to bbc news. our top stories: us basketball star kobe bryant, one of the game's greatest ever, is killed in a helicopter crash aged 41. it's sad to see one of —

a real basketball legend pass like that. but we're definitely going to remember his memory and keep his legacy alive. the private helicopter he was travelling in crashed in california and burst into flames, killing nine people, including his 13—year—old daughter. china reveals the coronavirus which has claimed more than 80 lives is infectious before symptoms show, making it harder to contain. after more clashes in iraq, the shia cleric moqtada al—sadr tells his supporters to clear the streets to avoid an escalation. and, 75 years after the liberation of auschwitz, we hear from the germans who helped to save their fellow jewish citizens. one of the all—time greats of basketball, kobe bryant, has been killed in a helicopter crash. reports say his helicopter went down into a hillside in calabasas in fog,

killing nine people, including kobe's teenage daughter, gianna. we begin with this report from our correspondent chris buckler, in washington. whether they cheered him orfeared him, all basketball fans recognised kobe bryant as one of the sport's greatest players. his entire 20—year career was spent in an la lakersjersey, and his death on the outskirts of the city has left people across the united states grieving. nine people died when the helicopter he was on crashed in calabasas. the la sheriff's office says that no—one survived the accident, including kobe bryant and his 13—year—old daughter gianna. his list of achievements is long — an all—star, an nba champion and an olympic gold—medallist. he was unashamedly competitive, and he was deeply frustrated when his playing career was cut short by injuries. he was bold enough and

brave enough to announce, and foolish enough, that he would be the greatest. and he did everything possible, humanly possible, to deliver on that promise. since his retirement from basketball, he had put his considerable energy into business ventures and charity work, particularly pushing health and education causes for children. president trump and a series of celebrities and sports stars have been paying tribute to a man who worked to overcome inequality and promote women's sport. but nowhere was kobe bryant more inspiring than on the court. when he left basketball, the la lakers retired hisjersey. they knew he was irreplaceable. a news conference given by sheriff alex villanueva.

it is going to be... roads closed untilfurther notice. ... we be... roads closed untilfurther notice. we will bring you more from the sheriff if he goes on to divulge any details about the crash or investigation of that crash. let's get more now from our correspondent in los angeles, david willis. we know that an investigation is under way. a team of more than a dozen investigators from the national transportation safety board in washington, dc are being dispatched to los angeles to try to get to the bottom of what actually caused this horrific helicopter crash about 10:00am this morning local time. but i have to say, there were a lot of people who went to the scene, were drawn to the scene, by the fire that caused — resulted from

this helicopter crash. and in actualfact, about a quarter of an acre of land was scorched by that fire, apparently. it does appear to be something to do with limited visibility. it's been very foggy here in los angeles over the last few days, and a lot of suggestions that that will have played a part in this crash, but we really will have to wait and see. officials had their work cut out initially actually clearing the area around the crash site, because so many kobe bryant fans flocked there to basically pay their respects and to witness what was going on. david, of course, we've seen so many reactions come in, and tributes from everyone he played with. and notable of course that the grammys, the music industry's biggest event, is being held inside the staples centre, where he played for 20 years. has he been mentioned in that ceremony? there will be a recurrent theme, i think, james, it's fair to say, during the grammy awards tonight.

and you're absolutely right. the staples centre, where the grammys are taking place, was the home arena for the la lakers, the scene of so many of kobe bryant's triumphs, and there will be many mentions. in fact, the organisers of the grammys show were reportedly rushing around at the last minute to try to incorporate more in his memory into the show this evening. but a lot of fans flocked down there to the staples centre to pay their respects, only to find that there was enhanced security in place simply because of the grammys show taking place there. just standing back for a second, amid the praise for him as a basketball player, a family man and an entrepreneur, there is perhaps a more complicated personal legacy which has to be discussed — the allegation of sexual assault in 2003, which he settled and for which he later apologised. can you sum that up for us? well, you're absolutely right. that was a blot on his career, there's no question about that,

and it took him a while to get back from that, if you like. it was back in 2003, as you mentioned, in colorado, and he was accused of sexual assault involving an employee of the hotel that he was staying at. now, charges were eventually dropped in what was to be that trial because the complainant, the plaintiff in the case, sorry, the person who was levelling the charges against kobe bryant, declined in the end to take the stand and give evidence against him. there was an out—of—court financial settlement reached, the details of which have been kept private. but you're absolutely right, that was a blot on the reputation of a man who had inspired so many, and went on to rehabilitate himself somewhat in the later years of his career with lakers, and subsequently in his work outside of the basketball court. he had a successful couple of years forming a production company, he became a champion for women's rights, and of course he won

an oscar a couple of years ago as well for a short animated film about his basketball career. aaron burgin grew up in los angeles and is now a basketball scout. he explained kobe bryant's impact. well, i mean, just like anybody who grew up in the city of los angeles and grew up idolising kobe bryant, this afternoon has been really, really hard for all of us. i've shed tears over someone i only spent maybe a second within my life. and it really has taken an impact, just, you know, on everyone. i mean, you're not going to find too many kobe bryants when you're watching high school hoops. but, you know, the one thing that you look for in players is just that competitive desire, that ability to just continue to fight and fight through any type of adversity. you know, and just from a personal perspective, you know, it's —

kobe meant the world to me. the chinese government has said it will extend the lunar new year holiday to try to bring the outbreak of the new coronavirus under control. more than 80 people have died, mostly in hubei province, where the epidemic began. officials have warned the disease is spreading faster than before. 0ur correspondent rupert wingfield—hayes has this report from hong kong. 0n the outskirts of wuhan, the race is on to beat the coronavirus. every bulldozer and excavator that can be found is being used to clear land fora i,000—bed isolation hospital. it must be finished in two weeks. the trouble is, it's needed now. chinese officials today admitted the virus is spreading faster, and that it can be passed on by people who show no symptoms. state television is showing scenes like this, of people being treated

in modern intensive care units. but videos like this one loaded to the internet claim to show a different picture — of hospitals overwhelmed and staff unable to cope. in beijing, reporters mobbed the head of china's cdc as he tried to calm the growing sense of panic. "this virus is not as strong oi’ as dangerous as the sars virus was," he says. "but it's a new virus, so we need time to develop treatment." while the chinese government is now taking decisive measures to try and contain the spread of this virus, many experts think it is already too late. one study suggests that in wuhan city alone, by the end of next week, there will be nearly 200,000 infections. and that's why senior doctors here in hong kong are calling on the government to close the border with mainland china. the british government, meanwhile, is under pressure to evacuate

britons stranded in wuhan, as the americans are doing with their citizens. the uk government is aware now that all the transport links are closed. so i find it a little bit surprising that we're being told to leave if we can, when there is no possible route. across central china, the sense of panic is rising. these pictures and videos posted on the internet appeared to show villages and towns putting up their own improvised borders, shutting themselves off, making sure travellers from outside cannot come in. wuhan itself is now a ghost town. today, this was the centre of a city of 11 million people, during the biggest holiday of the year. rupert wingfield—hayes, bbc news, in hong kong. at least three rockets have struck the us embassy in the iraqi capital baghdad. it is reported at least three people were wounded. no group has claimed responsibility but

the us state department saying she radical group remains dangerous. reports from iraq say that security forces have fired tear gas and live bullets at protesters. the demonstrators, mostly young iraqis, demand the removal of a corrupt government and an end to iranians influencing the country. running street battles in the heart of baghdad today. iraqi police throwing stones lobbed at them by demonstrators. there's a violet game of cat—and—mouse going on here. as you can see, the police are pushing up towards the protesters, to try and clear them away. those protesters have been throwing stones and molotov cocktails, and this is a situation that often turns deadly. this policeman was injured, but it is protesters who are bearing the brunt. over 600 killed in months of demonstrations.

despite the despair, they are still turning out. they want a new iraq, a nation free of sectarianism and corruption. who's not worried about the violence or the killings, the assassinations, the kidnapping and everything? you know, who's not worried about that? but, you know, what are we supposed to do? should we just stay and keep under slavery? there will be more protests, but no winners, in a country coming apart at the seams. martin patience, bbc news. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: we will have more on the death of kobe bryant, as basketball fans pay tribute to one of the game's greatest ever players.

the shuttle challenger exploded soon after lift—off. there were seven astronauts on board, one of them a woman school teacher. all of them are believed to have been killed. by the evening, tahrir square, the heart of official cairo, was in the hands of the demonstrators. they were using the word "revolution". the earthquake singled out buildings and brought them down in seconds. tonight, the search for any survivors has an increasing desperation about it as the hours passed. the new government is firmly in control of the entire republic of uganda. survivors of the auschwitz concentration camp have been commemorating the 40th anniversary of their liberation. they toured the gas chambers and crematoria, and relived the horrifying experiences.

this is bbc world news. the latest headlines: the american basketballer kobe bryant has been killed in a helicopter crash in southern california. he was 41. eight others, including his 13—year—old daughter, we re including his 13—year—old daughter, were killed alongside him when the helicopter came down. kobe bryant was well known globally, but had a particularly large following in china, where his charitable influence was felt particularly among young people. we spoke to a basketball reporter for espn who covered his career, including his retirement game in 2016. he didn't speak to any outlet. he basically had a speech, but it was a big, huge day.

we sent over ten people from china, straight from beijing to la, to cover that game, and it was broadcast in china. it was a huge deal, because kobe bryant is like the modern age of michaeljordan in china, so his impact is huge. especially for a lot of younger generations that were born after the 1990s, they probably don't have the memory or any experience watching michaeljordan when he was playing for the bulls, but kobe is a huge deal. they basically learned how to pick up a basketball from kobe bryant, and kobe really influenced everybody, including me, to enjoy watching basketball. so obviously his death is a huge loss to all of us. it's devastating news, and i think right now in china, everyone is watching this closely, and it's big exploding news everywhere. i was in the stadium in the beijing olympics in 2008 where he played for america against china. it was the match of the tournament. i remember chinese people actually cheering for kobe bryant,

sometimes, against china. i don't know if you remember that match, or if you could tell us more about his impact in china. yes, his impact is huge. and i'm going to tell you right now, the biggest—searched keywords on chinese social media weibo is kobe bryant, and also his daughter gigi. so right now, everyone is talking about it. everyone is trying to find out what the real investigation is, what is the real problem for the conditions of his death. and of course, everyone buys kobe sneakers, and i just looked at the market price of kobe sneakers. all his sneakers have gone up five times in price. some of the limited editions are ten times more, just went up ten times more within two hours. and remember, when this happened, it was at 2:00am in china, and everyone must feel like... most people, they are sleeping, but when they found out, everyone was wide awake. so right now, it's still in a huge discussion. so people have been discussing it overnight. coral, what is it about kobe bryant

that made him more popular than other mba players? what was it about him personally? well, he has a really, really smart person. he knows the importance of the international market. and you have to remember, he goes to china every summer. he also has a home in china. also, he does a lot of different business in china. when his animation film came out, he actually did a special interview, and it was released in china. also he has his books, and it is also released in chinese versions in china. so he knows the importance of the business in china, and he loves to visit and interact with the fans. and to be honest, for kobe bryant to face all of the international media, especially the chinese media, he is very, very friendly. and everybody in china, not only fans but also the media, they like

his professionalism. let's get some of the day's other news now. exit polls in peru's general elections indicate the governing party has won a majority. the support for popular force, led by the daughter of a disgraced former president, has plummeted. it will give the president a chance to enact anticorruption will give the president a chance to enact anticorru ption reforms. will give the president a chance to enact anticorruption reforms. in italy, early results from the regional election in romania suggest the centre—left democratic party has co mforta bly the centre—left democratic party has comfortably defeated the far right league party. this appears to reduce the chance of an early general election. 0n on monday, holocaust memorial day commemorates the 75th anniversary of the liberation of auschwitz. 6 million jewish people were murdered by the nazis in the second world war. in the capital, berlin, a jewish population of 160,000 was decimated with fewer than 1900

remaining at the end. some survived with the help of germans who, a great personal risk, hid them from the nazis. 0ur correspondent reports. although more than seven decades have passed since the nazis' defeat, berlin is still a city of shadowed memory. only a handful of the third reich symbols remain. but the recollection of terror endures here in the life of a survivor. ruth winkelmann isjewish and alive only because a german neighbourhood in his shed. translation: the gestapo was chasing me because i did not register as a jew. i went into hiding and lived in a shed, but without water, without electricity, i was freezing. and, of course, if i'd been caught, i would have been sent straight

to a concentration camp. 16 out of the 2a family members in this photograph were murdered in the death camps. translation: for hundreds of years, my family were living in berlin. we never imagined that germany could not be our country. what was happening was not imaginable. germans voted hitler into power knowing very well the vicious anti—semitism of the nazis. mostly they supported the dictator or looked the other way as theirjewish neighbours were persecuted. but not 14—year—old felicitas narloch. she lived near berlin with her grandmother, lydia. when a desperatejewish woman came to their door, they hid and fed her. felicitas smuggling food and

clothes. translation: we had to help. we couldn'tjust send a person away, someone who reached the end of their road. my grandmother didn't have any political motive. she just felt that somebody had to help. it was an emotional reaction. germanjews were being sent east to camps like auschwitz. they would be starved, beaten, worked to death and gassed, as the nazis imposed their final solution. to resist this evil requires exceptional courage. do you feel that what you did and your family that was heroic? nein, nein. translation: we didn't see this as heroic, we saw this simply as a way of helping someone, no matter how or why they had got into trouble, and i think anyone else would have done the same. this is the woman they saved. her husband had died in the camps, but her children were evacuated to britain before the war. shejoined them in 19116

and today her grandson recalls his debt to the bravery of a 14—year—old german girl. without her intervention and support, i wouldn't have known my grandmother, who then came to live with us after the war, after liberation. she lived another 20 years and met her grandchildren and made a life in this country. you know, she said to me, "anybody would have done it." would they? we know that there were hundreds of thousands of people who didn't. very few were like her. she was remarkable. i bear in mind the sayings of the fathers, jewish sayings, "if you save a life, you save a whole world." and felicitas and her family did just that. fergal keane, bbc news, berlin.

let's return now to our top story, the death of basketball legend kobe bryant. tributes have been pouring in from around the world, as rich piston reports. kareem abdul—jabbar, who played for the la lakers for 1h seasons, post to distribute. kobe was an incredible family man. he loved his wife and daughters. he was an incredible athlete and a leader ina lot an incredible athlete and a leader in a lot of ways. he inspired a whole generation of young athletes. he was one of the first to leave high school and come to the nba and do so well, dominating the game and becoming one of the best score is that the los angeles lakers has ever seen. kobe bryant's

long time lakers teammate, shaquille o'neal, wrote "there are no words to express the paini "there are no words to express the pain i am going through with this tragedy". us president donald trump tweeted to say the reports of kobe brya nt‘s tweeted to say the reports of kobe bryant's death were terrible news. former president barack obama said kobe was a legend on the court, and the death of kobe's daughter gianna made the news even more heartbreaking, calling it an unthinkable day. the american actress whoopi goldberg called kobe actress whoopi goldberg called kobe a hero, an extraordinary athlete, and said he was always kind to her and said he was always kind to her and her family. the and said he was always kind to her and herfamily. the us chat show host al and a generous tweeted to say she was stunned and saddened by the news, and that her heart is broken for kobe bryant's wife and family. the la lakers landed back in los angeles i was after hearing of the death of their former teammate. the brian james the death of their former teammate. the brianjames walking alone. what made kobe bryant so legendary is how much he was adored

by his fans. in 45 years of living i have not felt this much grief and love for one man that has passed, for his city, my city... he was an idol, he was an icon. for me, man, just watching his videos was more than basketball. it wasjust a videos was more than basketball. it was just a mentality to get through life and he got me through so many struggles in my life. it is one of the hottest losses i have ever dealt with and i never even met the man. kobe bryant, who has died at the age of a1. you are watching bbc news. after hello. after a largely dry and settled week last week, things are now changing. we had some rain on many parts on sunday which cleared. clearer skies during sunset. this was a stunning picture from the shetland isles

on sunday evening. things will be turning colder over the next day or so because of the blue colours on the map showing a westerly influence. the mild air is being pushed away towards the east. a chilly start to monday morning with temperatures below freezing on the northern half of the uk, cold in more rural spots with sleet and snow showers around as well. likely to bring some icy stretches to monday morning across parts of scotland, northern ireland and northern england as well. a sharp frost, watch out for some ice around first thing with sleet and snow showers. not only on the hills but down to relatively lower levels as well. further south across england and wales as well rain showers here with some sleetiness over high ground in wales. some hail and thunder with the heaviest of the showers. a bit of dry weather around on monday for parts of east anglia, northern england to eastern scotland as well but further south and west that is where you see the bulk of the showers and once again they will be wintry across parts of northern ireland and scotland as well. colder than recent days with temperatures

around a—9 degrees on monday and quite blustery as well. that breeze picks up during monday evening, blustery through the english channel, the bristol channel for instance as well with more heavy showers rattling through as we head through monday night and on into tuesday morning. simply spells will bring us to another cold night, widespread frost and a risk of eisinger‘s for almost anywhere on tuesday, particularly for scotland, northern ireland, northern england and north wales as well. tuesday dawns on a cold night with wintry showers again in the north. sunny spells through the day. eastern scotland much of central and east england see dry weather but more showers rattling in from the west elsewhere and a little colder once again, eight degrees on tuesday. then we have a ridge of high pressure working in from the atlantic as we head on into wednesday. that will quieten the weather down for a day or so, especially in the south. a dry day for england and wales and northern ireland tending to dry out as well. the rain and hill snow will push across scotland the day on wednesday. still relatively cool at this stage in the week, 7— 10 degrees but things will then turn mild and we return to double figures more widely towards the end of the week. a chilly start with snow and ice,

dry through the middle of the week and then things once again turn mild and unsettled later in the week.

this is bbc news. the headlines: one of the greatest basketballers of all time, kobe bryant, has been killed in a helicopter crash in california. he was a1. the aircraft in which he, his 13—year—old daughter and seven other people were travelling came down outside the town of calabasas. there were no survivors. china has confirmed around 750 new cases of the coronavirus, raising the total to more than 2,700. more than 80 people have died, mostly in hubei province,

where the epidemic began. more than 300 others are critically ill with pneumonia caused by the virus. shia cleric moqtada al—sadr has called off demonstrations in iraq. saying he wanted to avoid internal strife. he had earlier urged supporters to take to the streets of baghdad and other cities. the backdown comes after protesters were injured. now on bbc news, on the 75th anniversary of the liberation of auschwitz seven sucker dogs to a survivor. —— stephen sucker.

welcome to hardtalk, i'm stephen sackur.